Security company refuses to carry out Denmark-Sweden ID checks

Updated söndag 3 januari 2016 kl 17.28

Published söndag 3 januari 2016 kl 09.59

The new fence at the Kastrup train station, Photo: Jens Dresling/TT

Securitas Sweden, one of the country’s largest security companies, says it has refused offers from transportation companies to check ID cards for travelers coming to Sweden from Denmark, the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reports.

To slow the flow of refugees arriving in Sweden, the government has imposed the ID checks on all rail, bus, and ferry passengers from Denmark, starting Monday.

Ronny Fredriksson, head of press relations for Securitas Sweden, says they have been contracted by transport companies to take over the responsibilities, but declined.

“We need to know more,” he says. “The whole issue is very messy. From what we understand, no particular competence is required to carry out the checks. What you have to remember is that this is about foreign identification cards that we know nothing about.”

To comply with the Swedish requirements, fencing has been erected around one of the platforms at the train station at Copenhagen’s Kastrup Airport. Rail operators are cutting the number of departures between there and Malmö in southern Sweden, and warn that there might be significant delays.

The plan has been strongly criticized by a group representing commuters between the two cities.

The TT news agency reports that there also seem to be plans for a second ID check at Hyllie, the first station on the Swedish side. Police set up a fence at the station on Sunday.